048 Aviral Bansal IM 20 NITIE POM Course: The Social Business Concept

"By defining entrepreneurship in a broader way we can change

the character of capitalism radically" - Prof. Yunus

Within our economic system, there are currently two prevailing approaches to organizations. The first is that of the private sector where companies sell products or services to make money. However, there are important issues in our society which are not addressed by the private sector because they do not offer profit-making opportunities. This usually leads to government interventions to create legal and institutional frameworks to advance the common good and to protect the interests of weaker members of society. Where both governments and the markets reach their limits, charities may fill the gap.

The problem is, of course, that the system does not work well enough. We live in a world of terrible injustice and widespread poverty. Governments and charities have the will to improve it, but they lack the efficiency and innovativeness of the private sector. So why not combine the two sides? Let's bring the methods of business to the task of solving social problems such as poverty and create - social businesses!

It will be an entirely new kind of business. Until now running a business has always been self-focused, founded for the purpose of making money. Unlike traditional business, social business operates for the benefit of addressing social needs that enable societies to function more efficiently. Social business provides a necessary framework for tackling social issues by combining business know-how with the desire to improve quality of life. Therefore instead of being self-focused social business is all about others.

Prof. Yunus has already shown the effectiveness of this new type of business: his clear focus on eradicating extreme poverty combined with his condition of economic sustainability has created numerous models with incredible growth potential.

The Grameen Project’s vision is to serve society’s most pressing needs. They think that:

The difference between rich and poor is not wealth, but opportunity.

The poor are the world's greatest entrepreneurs. Each day they must innovate in order to survive. They only remain poor because they do not have the opportunities to turn their creativity into sustainable income.

The Grameen Project believes that the economic system in which we live does not create enough opportunities for the poor. This is because it lacks a vision.

Many of us have grown up in a society that believed in the "invisible hand" and the "trickle-down effect": if we all pursued our own economic interests, society as a whole would benefit, and if there is economic growth, this growth will eventually benefit the poor, too.While this has been true for some, it has failed others. We want to make it work for everyone.

This means creating a type of business that is not just about private interest but about collective benefit: the health, happiness and security of all and especially the less privileged. This type of business is social business.